The 35-year-old and his model girlfriend Rachael Cordingley even slept in separate beds to keep temptation at bay.

But after beating his Danish opponent on points on Saturday the Brit boxer admitted there have been “fireworks in the bedroom”.

In the couple’s first interview together since Carl added Kessler’s WBA super-middleweight belt to his IBF title, the fighter said: “It feels fantastic to be doing again what normal couples do.

“Rachael is beautiful — I’m very attracted to her.

“Not being able to go near her was very difficult, but it’s one of those sacrifices I had to make.

“When it finally happened it was like our first time — like falling in love all over again.

“I cooked Rachael a surprise dinner of chicken and rice and opened a bottle of champagne. We raised a glass to my success and for our family’s future.

“Rachael had a tear in her eye when I said, ‘Thank you for being so supportive — now you’ve finally got me back’.

“We had a hot, steamy night of passion that had been building up for the last three months.

“So of course there were fireworks in the bedroom. A night of passion wins over a fight any day.”

Rachael, 26, revealed she found it tougher than Carl to stick to their no-nookie agreement.

She said: “Carl’s got a job to do, but I found it hard. I'm glad it’s all back to normal. We had some fun. He’s like a modern-day Spartacus — a real man.”

Carl backed up Rachael’s suggestion that he had things slightly easier, given he was preparing for Saturday’s drama-drenched tussle with Kessler at London’s O2 by training for four hours a day, five times a week.

He said: “I train so hard, all my energy is taken up in the sessions.As attractive as Rachael is, when I come home, the last thing I want to do is burn off even more energy in the bedroom.

“But after a ban it’s phenomenal. You go through a lull period then look forward to the high.”

Comparing his abstinence to how race horses are trained, Carl added: “They don’t let a male stud mate before a big race because it takes away the horse’s drive and energy.

“It’s the same in human beings. If a man abstains he keeps his strength. I feel stronger and fitter when I abstain because my body holds on to more testosterone. Women weaken legs. I don’t get weak legs when I’m abstaining. Sometimes two weeks is long enough to give me the strength — you can overdo it.”

Carl’s training regime saw him living away from the couple’s Nottingham home to spend time at the English Institute Of Sport in Sheffield.

When he came back at weekends, Carl would even sleep in another part of their house to ensure the ban wasn’t jeopardised.

He said: “We didn’t sleep in the same bed when I was training.I stayed in the east wing of the house and Rachael was upstairs in the master bedroom.”

Rachael added: “If your partner’s not there, what are you going to do? You just get on with it.”

Three months is the longest the couple have gone without action in the bedroom, partly because of Rachael’s recent pregnancy.

The underwear beauty and former Miss Maxim contest winner gave birth to their second child, daughter Natalia, three weeks ago. The couple already have a son, two-year-old Rocco.

It is not the first time in their four-year relationship that they have sacrificed sex for Carl’s career.

Carl explained: “There have been about five or six big fights since we’ve been together. This time round the timing was more ideal because Rachael was heavily pregnant for part of it.”

Apart from sex, Carl says the hardest thing to give up during training is junk food.

He said: “I have a sweet tooth but I have to be very strict with myself — no chocolate, sweets, cheesecake or sweets. I can’t eat anything nice.

“I eat complex carbohydrates and a varied diet. There’s no raw eggs, though, because they give you salmonella — that’s just something from the Rocky films.

“Now I can pig out for a couple of days before getting back on the scales. I’ve already had some chocolate this morning.”

Rachael has been a boxing fan since before she met Carl and has been his biggest ringside supporter since, attending most fights.

But the mum-of-two watched Carl defeat Kessler on Saturday at home with her mum and nan — and reveals it was a lot more nerve-racking.

Rachael said: “It was awful. Usually I’m ringside shouting my mouth off. But you do get a better view on TV.

“I got to see Carl in the changing room, which I never have before and that was nice.Although Carl is involved in a tough, physical sport, I block out the fact he might get injured.

“I just want him to win because I know how much he wants it.I was screaming at the television on Saturday.”

Despite sporting a bit of a shiner and having a cut above his eye, Carl added: “I didn’t get hurt on Saturday. I had three stitches on my eye, a swollen nose and a sore cheekbone and hands.

“But they were superficial injuries and I’m a seasoned professional.”

Carl believes his next bout will be in five months. Having won Saturday’s rematch with Kessler he wants to settle the score with the only other man to have beaten him — US rival Andre Ward.

But for now, Carl and Rachael — who met through a mutual friend — are planning a family holiday to Majorca this summer.

The pair aren’t engaged yet but now the Kessler match is out of the way, Carl isn’t ruling anything out.

He said: “If I ever marry anyone, it will be Rachael. I’ve been too busy with my career and making babies.

“I’m sure it won’t be too long. But let’s just say I don’t want to break any surprises just yet.” # Source: The Sun.co.uk